How do I make coordinates relate to global values?
I'm not sure what you mean by "transform menu at the bottom left". 

When I translate a vertex of a mesh object while in Edit Mode, the Translate Operator is invoked and its properties are editable in the lower portion of the tool panel. Because the translation moves a vertex, the translation vector displayed here is the delta (the difference between the original position and the new position; the amount the vertex was moved.)

However in the upper right is the Transform Panel which displays the location of the current vertex, and this panel can be set to display either the Global or Local coordinates of the selected vertex, which sounds like what you want.

Does that help at all?